Mets notes: Parnell to have neck surgery

Mets closer Bobby Parnell will need neck surgery to repair a herniated disk, according to Mets manager Terry Collins, who had said Sunday Parnell had planned to wait until mid-September to make the decision.

Last month, Parnell had said if he had to undergo surgery, he expected to be ready for spring training. Monday, Collins tentatively agreed with that timeline.

"I'm not doing the surgery,'' Collins hedged, adding, "He should, probably, but I'm not going to [promise that].''

Parnell, who had 22 saves with a 2.16 ERA this season, has been on the disabled list since Aug. 6.

The Mets added veteran right-handed pitcher Aaron Harang, outfielder Mike Baxter and catcher Juan Centeno to the major league roster Monday, and they're expected to add the 35-year-old Harang to their starting rotation on Thursday against the Nationals.

"They told me I'd slide in there and pitch on Thursday," Harang said. "I came in, got a bullpen [session] in today. It fits me right into [the rotation] schedule-wise when I was throwing down in Las Vegas.

"The biggest thing was to be in the rotation and hopefully be the veteran that can help answer questions for the younger guys, and just finish out my season on a strong note was the biggest thing. Here it was getting a chance to finish out the season in the rotation."

The Mets will push Jon Niese back a day, having him start Friday against the Marlins.

"Zack [Wheeler], even though he didn't throw a lot of pitches, said he wanted to come back on regular rest, he feels comfortable doing that,'' Collins said. "Jon said, 'I don't care what you do.' So we'll have Jon pitch Friday night to open the Miami series. Nobody's hurt, everybody's fine.''

If he gets in a game, Centeno would be making his major league debut.

The Mets reportedly are set to play two exhibition games against the Blue Jays at Montreal's Olympic Stadium near the end of next spring training, an agreement first reported by Sportsnet.ca. The Mets haven't played there since Sept. 23, 2004.

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Injury makes victory sweeter for Nadal

There is a shelf life for greatness in every sport. The best never last forever — even those who spend the longest time in the rarified air dominating their sport.

So even at the age of 27, an age when many of us are merely just beginning to find our way in our professional lives, Rafael Nadal is slowly approaching that end line in his already-brilliant career right now, with his professional mortality tested by another knee injury from which he came back only seven months ago.

That made Nadal's 6-2, 3-6, 6-4, 6-1 victory over Novak Djokovic for his second career U.S. Open title and second Grand Slam of the year Monday night at Arthur Ashe Stadium that much more important for the Spaniard, who captured his 13th career Grand Slam with the win.

Further adding to the sweet taste of victory for Nadal was how remarkable it was he was even in the final, considering he was sidelined with that partially torn patella tendon last year, which had many — including Nadal and his inner circle — wondering if he would ever return to his world-class form.

Much like Vikings running back Adrian Peterson returned from a torn ACL suffered in 2011 and nearly broke the NFL single-season rushing record last season, Nadal looks as if he has returned from his latest knee injury an even better player.

Given the circumstances it took to get to his lucky 13th Slam, Nadal called the win "probably the most emotional one in my career.''

It showed when the match ended, and after a warm embrace with Djokovic at the net, Nadal tumbled to the court face down and wept.

"I felt that I did everything right to have my chance here,'' he said. "You play one match against one of the best players of the history like this … Novak … No. 1 in the world … on his favorite surface … I [had] to be almost perfect to win. This is a really special moment for me.''

Nadal, only one Grand Slam title short of Pete Sampras' 14 and four away from tying the all-time record of 17 held by Roger Federer, is already one of the all-time greats, and he's not nearly finished yet.

"Well, 13 Grand Slams for a guy who is 27 years old is incredible,'' Djokovic said. "He's definitely one of the best tennis players ever to play the game and, looking at his achievements and his age, he still has a lot of years to play.''

The reality of Nadal's latest knee injury, coupled with the violent way in which he has always moved around the tennis court and played, is that there was always a possibility he might never get back to center court at Ashe to play in a U.S. Open final.

But a remarkable run of hardcourt play in the last few months has boosted not only Nadal's confidence but his chances of possibly overtaking Federer.

Nadal, who also won the U.S. Open in 2010, is now 22-0 on hardcourts this year — noteworthy not only for its perfection, but because Nadal's best surface has always been clay, where he famously wears his opponents down to the dust they're playing on. Hardcourts, in fact, are his least favorite surface.

Adding to his greatness is the fact Nadal — like a Hall of Fame pitcher who used to strike out 10 batters a game with 100 mph heat but had to become more of a finesse pitcher after having arm trouble — has altered his game to ease the strain on his body by playing more aggressively to shorten points and protect his knees.

Two hours after the match, as he sat and answered questions in a press conference, a reporter asked Nadal about the possibilities ahead of him — like overtaking Sampras and chasing down Federer. He smiled and said, "Let me enjoy today.''

If he is able to match Federer's Grand Slam record, though, Nadal might not even need to win an 18th to be considered the greatest of all time, because he has a 21-10 career record against the Swiss star.

This is what lies ahead of the Spaniard for as long as that shelf-life window remains open. He should enjoy the ride, and you should enjoy the show.

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Indian court convicts 4 in fatal gang rape case

NEW DELHI — An Indian court convicted four men Tuesday in the fatal gang rape of a young woman on a moving New Delhi bus, an attack that set off waves of protests and gave voice to years of anger over the treatment of women.

The men, convicted on all the counts against them, including rape and murder, now face the possibility of hanging. The sentences are expected to be handed down Wednesday.

Reading out his verdict, Judge Yogesh Khanna said the men had committed "murder of a helpless person."

The parents of the rape victim, who cannot be identified under Indian law, had tears in their eyes as the verdicts were read. The mother, wearing a pink sari, sat just a few feet from the convicted men in a tiny courtroom jammed with lawyers, police and reporters.

Outside the courthouse, where dozens of protesters had gathered, a chant began quickly after the verdict: "Hang Them! Hang Them! Hang Them!"

Protesters called the case a wake-up call for India.

"Every girl at any age experiences this — harassment or rape. We don't feel safe," said law school graduate Rapia Pathania. "That's why we're here. We want this case to be an example for every other case that has been filed and will be filed."

A.P. Singh, a lawyer for the men, said all were innocent.

"These accused have been framed simply to please the public," he told reporters. "This is not a fair trial."

The four men, along with another suspect who hanged himself in prison and a juvenile convicted in August, were riding through the city on an off-duty bus in December when they tricked the 23-year-old woman and a male friend into boarding.

They beat the friend into submission, held down the woman and repeatedly raped her. They also penetrated the woman repeatedly with an iron rod, causing severe internal injuries that led to her death two weeks later.

Facing public protests and political pressure, the government reformed some of its antiquated laws on sexual violence, creating fast-track courts to avoid the painfully long rape trials that can easily last over a decade. The trial of the four men, which took about seven months, was astonishingly fast by Indian standards.

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Egyptian troops pound Islamic extremists near Gaza

EL-ARISH, Egypt — Egyptian troops and tanks backed by helicopter gunships swept through villages in the northern Sinai Peninsula near the border with the Palestinian Gaza Strip on Monday, the third day of a major offensive against Islamic extremists, a military official said. So far, some 20 suspected militants have been killed and 20 captured in the operation, he added.

Explosions rocked el-Mahdiya and Naga Shabana, two of several villages south of the town of Rafah, the official said, where the military hit targets and shelters used by militants wanted for the killing and abduction of Egyptian soldiers over the past year.

A day earlier, an al-Qaida-inspired militant group based in the area claimed responsibility for last week's failed assassination attempt on Egypt's interior minister, describing the Cairo attack as a "suicide" car bomb.

The claim could not be independently verified but it appeared on militant websites that regularly distribute statements from al-Qaida-linked groups. If true, it would mark the first time Sinai militants took their fight to the heart of the Egyptian capital with a suicide attack.

Tourist resorts along the southern coast of the rocky, desert region saw a string of suicide bombings in the mid-2000s that left at least 125 people dead and triggered mass arrests and detentions of thousands of Bedouin tribesman. The crackdown soured relations between locals and the central government, intensifying the Bedouins' feelings of mistreatment and turning the northern end of the peninsula into an incubator for Islamic extremism.

Like Ansar Jerusalem, other Sinai-based al-Qaida inspired groups have been blamed for a spike of attacks against military and police in northern Sinai since the military ousted former Islamist President Mohammed Morsi on July 3.

The increase in violence has raised suspicions of links between Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood and Islamic militant groups. Military officials have accused Morsi of handling the groups too leniently and striking a truce with them to halt their attacks in return for suspending military operations against them during his year in office. This truce, they say, gave militants free reign to stockpile weapons, evidenced by the large caches of anti-aircraft missiles, mortars, and RPGs and other weapons seized by the army since Saturday.

Mustafa Hegazy, the interim president's political adviser, told Egyptian TV station Al-Hayat that under Morsi's rule, the number of militants in Sinai jumped to 7,000 or more from 1,000.

"It is graver than what we thought," he said in a late Sunday interview. He said the attempt on the interior minister did not signal a broader deterioration of Egypt's security, which was being "restored" across the country.

In the Ansar Jerusalem statement posted late Sunday, the group said it carried out the attack on Interior Minister Gen. Mohammed Ibrahim's motorcade to avenge Muslims killed by security forces during their violent Aug. 14 dismantlement of two sprawling encampments set up in Cairo by pro-Morsi supporters demanding his reinstatement. The day left hundreds dead in what was an unprecedented bloodbath. It also sparked a wave of unrest across the country where pro-Morsi supporters attacked churches and police stations.

"The Interior Ministry, the slaughterer, has seen death with its own eyes from a martyrdom operation carried out by a lion of Egypt's lions," the statement said. "What is coming will be worse," it added.

"We pledge to God the Almighty to seek revenge for Muslims on all those who contributed to their killings and assaulting their honor, above all el-Sissi and Mohammed Ibrahim," it said, also referring to Egypt's Military Chief Gen. Abdel-Fatah el-Sissi who led the coup against Morsi after millions took to the streets demanding his resignation for abuse of power.

The statement urged Muslims to stay away from the ministries of interior and defense, indicating that these two institutions will be targeted.

It also showed an ideological proximity to al-Qaida, citing an Aug. 3 statement by the group's leader, Ayman al-Zawahri, that mocked the democratic process and called upon "soldiers of the Quran to wage the war for the Quran," the Muslim holy book.

An Egyptian security official said authorities are still studying the statement, but confirmed that human remains suspected to belong to the suicide bomber were found inside the car used in the bombing. The Health Ministry said that one person died a day later of wounds sustained during the attack, and more than 20 were injured.

Ansar Jerusalem does not have a proven record of carrying out attacks outside of Sinai. It has previously claimed responsibility for attacks on gas pipelines to Israel, rockets targeting Israel and a 2012 shootout along the Israeli-Egyptian border in which three militants and an Israeli soldier were killed.

The army however has targeted it along with several other Islamic militant groups in its current operation.

In northern Sinai, mobile phone networks, landlines and the Internet were down early Monday as the military resumed its strikes on alleged militant hideouts in the southern town of Rafah, according to the military official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the press.

Besides those killed and captured in the operation, a number of suspects have fled to coastal villages or tried to enter Gaza through underground tunnels.

Witnesses said that they saw soldiers leaving troop carriers and firing in the air in celebration at sunset as they returned from the town of Rafah to their base in the city of el-Arish. Behind them, columns of smoke rose in the sky from where strikes were concentrated just south of Rafah, they added.

In the area lies the village of el-Mahdiya, believed to be the home of militant leader Shadi el-Manaei, a suspected mastermind of the abduction of seven Egyptian soldiers in May.

An official said the military seized weapons and ammunition there. There was no report on causalities or arrests.

In what appeared to be retaliatory attacks, suspected Islamic militants fired an RPG at a checkpoint in el-Arish, killing one soldier and injuring two others, the military official said. He added that in two other separate incidents, one army officer was shot in the head and two soldiers injured in attacks on check points in central Sinai.

On Monday, fear of new attacks in Cairo prompted authorities to beef up security, especially in stations and trains of the subway network, where men guards patrolled with sniffer dogs and searched passengers. Millions of commuters use the subway daily.

On Saturday, three mortar rounds were removed from railway tracks in the eastern city of Suez. Passenger trains in Egypt have been stopped since Aug. 14.

On Sunday, Ibrahim, the interior minister, ordered a tightening of security at the main bridges and highway crossings from Sinai to the mainland, the official news agency reported. He said the move was to prevent the "infiltration of terrorist elements escaping the security crackdown in Sinai into the provinces."

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Slain tot’s dad: I’ll talk to press – for a price

He won't lift a finger to help cops nail the low-life who gunned down his baby boy, but the father who was the likely target of the shooting doesn't mind profiting from his son's murder.

A man claiming to be Anthony Hennis, tragic Antiq Hennis' gangbanger dad, called The Post yesterday trying to solicit blood money to tell his side of the story.

"It doesn't have to be like you're paying me to talk," said the man, who insisted he was fielding offers from other media outlets, including one he said came from the Daily News for $15,000.

"You could be donating to help my family," the caller said. "I just got to take care of my family, the ones I do have left."

When asked how his family is holding up, the man said, "They're not doing good at all. They don't feel safe."

The caller left a number and cut the call short, saying he believed he was "being recorded." Before he hung up, he said he was staying with his grandmother and could be reached there.

Antiq Hennis

A cross-reference check of the number showed it is, in fact, associated with Hennis' grandmother, the woman he and Antiq were on their way to see when shots rang out Sept. 1 on a Brownsville street corner.

Several friends of Hennis, whose family members held him back last week from attacking members of the media outside his home, confirmed he was soliciting money from news outlets, although Hennis himself was later unavailable for comment at his home.

The Post did not comply with his request.

Spokesman Ken Frydman said the Daily News didn't cough up the cash, either.

"The answer is no," Frydman said. "He did ask for money, but the paper didn't pay him."

Sources said Hennis, 21, was the intended target when bullets ripped through the 16-month-old boy's stroller during their early-evening walk.

But cops said Hennis, who has a criminal record that includes 23 arrests, refuses to identify the killer or provide any details about the shooting or the beef that resulted in the innocent toddler's death.

"He's an active gang member," a law-enforcement source said. "They rarely talk to us."

"They don't snitch." another source said. "Snitching is a big no-no with them. And he probably wants to handle it himself, which will make more work for us."

Police have arrested a suspect, Daquan Breland, 23, but Hennis' stonewalling "could seriously affect the case," according to one source who described the testimony of a material witness and intended target as "important."

Another source suggested that investigators could seek a court order compelling Hennis to testify.

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Beatles fan-club secretary breaks silence

Do you want to know a secret?

Then you're out of luck, because for nearly 50 years, Freda Kelly has kept her mouth shut.

The quiet office worker from Liverpool served as The Beatles' fan-club secretary throughout the 1960s and early 1970s, watching their meteoric rise, getting to know their families and spending many a wild night out with the lads in the most famous band of all time.

Kelly, 26, The Beatles Official Fan Club Secretary, pictured at her Liverpool office, in 1971.

Now, Kelly's omerta has finally cracked, and she's telling her story for the first time in the new documentary "Good Ol' Freda," available on demand and hitting the Sunshine Cinema on East Houston Street this Friday.

Kelly is so private that even her family and friends didn't know much about her previous life with the Fab Four — including the movie's director, Ryan White, a family friend.

"I've known Freda for years," says White, an American whose uncle is Billy Kinsley of Liverpool's The Merseybeats. "I had no idea she was the Beatles' secretary. I just thought she was a secretary that worked at a law firm."

Kelly, now in her late 60s, finally warmed to the idea of speaking publicly after her first grandchild was born, and she realized she wanted to leave a legacy for her family. She approached White about making the movie.

"There are certain things I knew she wouldn't entertain. When we began the conversation, she said she didn't want to make anything scandalous or gossipy," White says.

"She hasn't sold out The Beatles. She could have made millions over her life, but she hasn't done it. She made this film on her own terms."
One subject she won't discuss is the rumor that she dated a Beatle. In the film, White presses her, but Kelly refuses to budge.

What you will hear about is how Kelly was a teenage fan of the band, seeing many of their early shows at The Cavern Club. She got to know John, Paul, George and Ringo, as well as their manager, Brian Epstein. As the band got more popular, Epstein offered the 17-year-old Kelly a job in his office, running the fan club.

She would answer the flood of letters, as well as field strange requests from diehards. In one instance, she received a stick of gum from a fan. She had one of the boys chew it, then sent it back. In another, Kelly asked Ringo to sleep on a pillowcase, then mailed it to an admirer.

"Those are things I don't think Justin Bieber fans are getting these days that Beatles fans got back then because a Beatles fan was running the operation," White says.

Ringo Starr, left, Freda Kelly, center, and George Harrison, right, in 1967.

Kelly would stick with the group — albeit in Liverpool, because her parents refused to let her move to London — until the very end. She penned the letter announcing the band's breakup that was mailed to fan-club members.
White says that despite her avoidance of the spotlight for so many years, Kelly is actually enjoying the attention.

"She told me the other day that this is like a second youth for her," the director says. "She had that crazy decade, then she went into hiding. But now with this film, she's re-engaging with that world."

Kelly is no richer, however.

She still works six days a week in a law office and lives in a modest house in Liverpool. She gave away much of her valuable memorabilia to distraught fans in the mid-1970s, but she still has numerous boxes stashed in her attic. While looking through them for the documentary, White foolishly suggested that Kelly could be sitting on millions.

"She looked at me disgusted, and I kind of wilted," he says.

Good ol' Freda.
Freda's Fab 4 fortune
The Post asked two memorabilia dealers to roughly estimate the value of some items glimpsed in "Good Ol' Freda," the new documentary about former Beatles fan-club secretary Freda Kelly — even if she doesn't want to sell any of it.

1. Complete set of fan mag The Beatles Book

The monthly fan magazine (inset) ran for 77 issues, starting in 1963. Rick Rann, a Beatles memorabilia dealer for 35 years, estimates a complete set to be worth $750 to $1,000, though Kelly's personal set would command a premium.

2. Early band photos

Kelly has a fascinating collection of personal snapshots, including some of the earliest-known photos of The Beatles in their Cavern Club days. Rann estimates that each unpublished photo could be worth thousands.

3. A lock of George Harrison's hair

A single strand from the guitarist's head sold for $2,500 in 2011, so a whole lock could be worth thousands, Rann says.

4. Beatles autographs

Kelly has an autograph book in which all four Beatles signed their names and wrote personal messages to her. Getting all four autographs together is rare and raises the value of an item considerably. "With provenance, I would think it is worth anywhere between $8,500 and $12,500," says Jason Cornthwaite of Beatles memorabilia dealer Tracks.

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Brooklyn artist rents out grungy trailers to tourists

Tourists can live like the city's starving artists — for just $80 a night!

A Crown Heights woodworker is marketing the back of his warehouse as an offbeat trailer park where tourists slum it in three campers surrounded by a chain-link fence.

Vacationers can choose from a 1954 Shasta trailer with a twin bed, a 1968 four-bed Shasta or a four-person Avion trailer. There are also three rooms for rent in the warehouse.

The antique trailers lock only from the inside and are stocked with cans of tuna and brandy bottles filled with water.
Each additional guest costs an extra $25.

Kellam Clark, who has advertised the campers on the Web site Airbnb.com since May, said he created the kooky caravans to stay in business in a rapidly gentrifying neighborhood.

"After a few months, it became clear this is an experience people really enjoy," Clark told The Post. "They enjoy being close to and being a part of what New York is in their mind."

It's "the real Brooklyn experience," one reviewer on the website wrote. "Even if the area and the first glance may give you a wrong impression, it is a great place to stay."

Another traveler called it the worst night of her life.

"We flew in terror after the first night," a Berlin tourist wrote. "In the handout we received at the beginning we were asked not to open the door for the police — no matter what they say and how they would try to get in."

Guests enter through a metal door in the yard after calling a number listed on a mail slot. The trailers are parked amid a fire pit and bevy of sculptures and other oddities.

Stocked with clean sheets, blankets, towels and dishes, the trailers have a refrigerator and stove — though neither work. There's just one bathroom for all guests and it's inside the warehouse.

A shower and toilet are separated by a wall — with a peephole behind a mirror allowing public view.

"I would also suggest taking a towel into the shower area to cover the fisheye lens . . . unless having someone watching you take a shower is your thing," one reviewer said.

The Dean Street campground is one of thousands of city residences on Airbnb.com. In May, an administrative law judge ruled site users are violating a state law prohibiting landlords from renting out apartments for fewer than 30 days. But tenants are likely to face the city's wrath only if neighbors file complaints against them.

That's why the trailer park and warehouse — not a legal residence under current zoning — come with hard rules.
If asked, hipster hillbillies must say they are working on a project, the website instructs.

Visitors must also adhere to the junkyard Jellystone's freewheeling ways: Clark and his fellow artists, for instance, "reserve the right to be nude when it is not inappropriate," according to the listing.

"It is not okay to watch normal TV programming in any of the common spaces," Clark wrote on Airbnb. "Advertisements are like acid on the brain and are banished from this space."

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